Cessna 170 N3016A accident near Albuquerque, New Mexico

Probable cause

The pilot receiving instruction's failure to maintain directional control and his inadvertent left brake pedal application during the landing roll, which resulted in a runway excursion and ground-loop.

NTSB analysis

The pilot receiving instruction for his tailwheel endorsement reported that he and the flight instructor were performing touch-and-go landings on the asphalt surface runway. The airplane was equipped with toe brakes, and after landing, he added power to abort the landing and applied right rudder as the airspeed accelerated to 30 knots. He recalled that he held the right rudder pedal application "too long" and that the airplane veered right. He attempted to correct the right veer by applying left rudder but overcorrected, and the instructor took the controls and applied full deflection of the right rudder. The airplane did not respond to the instructor's right rudder input, and he then applied left aileron. The pilot kept his feet on the pedals and inadvertently applied left brake. The airplane was side loaded to the right, and the right wing struck the ground. The instructor held his control inputs to direct the airplane to the right, but the right wing struck the ground again before the airplane exited the left side of the runway. The wheels dug into dirt on the left side of the runway, the elevator struck the ground, and the right wing struck the ground a third time before the airplane came to rest upright. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing and right elevator. The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for GAA20CA082 for the full record.